By Jacob Maurer

ETSU Student Writer

JOHNSON CITY — Earlier this fall, East Tennessee State University’s Clara Reynolds, a member of the Roan Scholars Leadership Program, was recognized as volunteer of the year by the Branch House — The Family Justice Center of Sullivan County.

The Branch House is a public-private partnership made up of more than 30 different organizations that offer free and confidential counseling, support, advocacy, legal aid and access to safe shelters for victims of abuse. Reynolds received the Daryl Marino Award, named for a dedicated volunteer who helped oversee the renovation and opening of Branch House, for work completed during her Summer of Service with Roan Scholars Leadership Program.

During the summer following their first year at ETSU, all Roan Scholars serve for six weeks with a nonprofit or service-oriented organization, adding value to that organization and making an impact while building leadership skills. Reynolds’s Summer of Service at Branch House allowed her a hands-on experience helping people affected by abuse.

“Clara was ready, willing, and able to jump right in whenever and wherever she was needed,” said Otis Thornton, executive director of Branch House. “Clara did everything, from helping with client services to cleaning, from making us a chore chart to offering support when staff’s jobs got extra stressful.”

Reynolds, a native of Kingsport, was inspired to serve at Branch House after participating in ETSU’s Alternative Breaks program where students, faculty and staff members spend a week learning about and engaging in service around challenging social issues. She participated in an Alternative Breaks trip to Greenville, S.C., which focused on how human trafficking affects people and communities. This experience inspired her to serve at the Branch House.

“I think in some ways it grew me up a bit,” Reynolds said. “I got to see a lot of the hardships people have to go through, and I’m really grateful for that experience because I can go through my interactions with strangers in my career and be a little bit more sensitive to those differences.”

Reynolds is majoring in health sciences with a minor in digital media and is a member of the Roan Class of 2022. She is a graduate of Providence Academy.

Reynolds plans to become a physician’s assistant, and she sees connections between that path and what she learned at Branch House.

“I do think that that knowledge can be useful in any range of fields,” she explained. “Especially in medicine because there are a lot of people who have been hurt and go to doctors, and sometimes there are symptoms of domestic violence and sexual assault that aren’t recognized by physicians, so I think having that experience will make me a little bit more alert to those dangers.”

The Roan Scholars Leadership Program empowers students to be leaders of excellence who will positively impact the ETSU campus, the region and the world. The Roan offers a comprehensive four-year program of out-of-the-classroom experiences as well as a financial award for tuition and fees, room and board, and books and supplies. The Roan, which is funded primarily by private donations, was established in 1997 by Louis H. Gump. More information on the Roan Scholars is available at https://roanscholars.org/.